The Musical World of Marie-Antoinette: Opera and Ballet in 18th Century Paris and Versailles

Contents

• Table of Contents
• Preface
• A Note on Sources
• 1. A Country Ripe for Change
• A Surprise Meeting 7 • The Harp 9 • Music Takes Over 10 • The Petit Trianon 11 • The Trianon Theater
• 2. Christoph Willibald Gluck and the Quest for Drama
• French Influence in Vienna 16 • Reform Operas 17 • Calzabigi 18 • Ideas of Paris 19 • Du Roullet 20 • A Bold Enterprise 21 • Stormy Rehearsals 22 • A Letter from Rousseau 23 • This Happy Revolution 24 • A New Part for the Goddess 25 • Orphée et Eurydice
• 3. “Simplicity, Truth, and Naturalness”
• Alceste 28 • Armide 28 • Dramatic Impact 29 • Painter, Poet and Musician 30 • A Terrible Battle 32 • La Harpe’s Attack 32 • Anonyme de Vaugirard
• 4. The Baroness and the Broken Old Songbird
• Two Divas 35 • A Fight with a Prince 36 • The Voice of the People 37 • Brutal Hostility 38 • Madame la Baronne 40 • Arnould Attempts a Comeback
• 5. Niccolò Piccinni
• In Search of a Fortune 43 • Du Barry’s Rivalry 44 • Is There No Sun? 46 • Orlando and Orlandino
• 6. Iphigénie en Champagne
• Atys 51 • An Operatic Duel 52 • The Drunken Soprano 54 • A Convivial Dinner
• 7. A Star Is Born: Madame ­Saint-Huberty
• Didon 59 • An Unfortunate Marriage 60 • Didon Transformed 61 • Authentic Costume 63 • Quarrels with Management 64 • Piccinni Returns to Naples
• 8. Mozart
• The Duc de Guînes 66 • A Warning 67 • From Child Prodigy to Nobody 68 • From Mannheim to Paris 69 • Baron von Grimm 73 • Aristocrats 74 • Slow Return to Salzburg
• 9. Antonio Salieri
• Écho et Narcisse 78 • Les Danaïdes 80 • Salieri’s Deception 82 • Les Horaces
• 10. Tragédie Lyrique
• In Search of a Common Language 85 • Italy versus France 85 • Lully 86 • Rameau 87 • Scribblers 89 • The Buffoons 89 • Religious Undertone 90 • Rousseau 91 • Le devin du village 93 • A Hell for the Ears 95 • The French Howl 96 • Why Was the Paris Opéra So
• 11. The Entrepreneur
• The Performing Monkey Pays 99 • De Vismes du Valgay 100 • Expanding the Repertoire 101 • A Fresh Start 102 • Castor et Pollux 104 • Les Bouffons, Bis 104 • A Modern Impresario 106 • The Opéra Conspiracy 106 • De Vismes’ Denial
• 12. Ballet and the Art of Gesture
• Dupré’s Graceful Steps 110 • Ballets within Operas 111 • Pantomime 111 • Gluck and Ballet 112 • Noverre 113 • Enormous Ill Will
• 13. ­Marie-Madeleine Guimard
• Mirza et Lindor 117 • Extravagance 119 • A Favorite at Court 120 • Ballet and Meaning 121 • Nature 122 • Grace
• 14. Concerts
• Concert Life 124 • Aristocrats 126 • Foreigners 126 • Baron Bach 127 • The Concert Spirituel 127 • Gossec and the Concert des Amateurs 128 • L’Orchestre de la Société Olympique 130 • The Court 131 • Menus Plaisirs
• 15. Opéra Comique
• The Italian Theater 133 • Jean Monnet 133 • Financial Crisis 135 • The Merged Company 137 • An Italian Innovator 138 • Monsigny 138 • Philidor 140 • Nicolas-Marie d’Alayrac
• 16. Marguerite Montansier
• Into the Queen’s Circle 144 • The Theater at Versailles 145 • Paisiello 147 • Montansier’s Role 147 • Move to Paris 148 • Théâtre de Monsieur
• 17. ­André-Modeste Grétry
• The Queen’s Music Director 152 • Grétry Walks to Rome 153 • A Meeting with Voltaire 154 • Hostile Reception in Paris 155 • Marmontel Comes to the Rescue 156 • Opus One 157 • Zémire et Azor 158 • Michel-Jean Sedaine 160 • Tragedies
• 18. ­Jean-Nicolas Bouilly
• Pierre le Grand 163 • Antoinette 163 • Grétry’s Great Loss 164 • Grétry Quits Music 166 • Revolutionary Politics 167 • Fidelio
• 19. The Opéra in the 1780s
• Fire, Again! 169 • A Race to Rebuild 171 • Safety Concerns 172 • Antoine Dauvergne 172 • The Stars Run Away 174 • Mlle. Théodore 175 • Undisputed Talent 176 • Dauberval Flees to London
• 20. Antonio Sacchini
• L’Olympiade 179 • Xenophobia at the Opéra 180 • Renaud 181 • Chimène 182 • Dardanus 183 • Œdipe à Colone 184 • Arvire et Évélina
• 21. Figaro and Tarare
• The Marriage of Figaro 187 • The Necklace Affair 187 • The End Game 188 • A Wave of Slander 189 • Tarare 190 • An Oriental Theme
• 22. The Show Goes On
• Resentment of Bureaucracy 194 • Dauvergne Reappointed 195 • A School for Principals 197 • Les Filles de l’Opéra 197 • The Show Goes On 198 • Tu dors Brutus
• 23. Religion and Revolution
• The Grand Motet 202 • Jean-François Lesueur 203 • Gossec and the Big Sound 204 • François Giroust 205 • A New Religion 207 • A Revolution in Song 209 • La Marseillaise 211 • Dialogue des Carmélites
• 24. Tragic Epilogue
• A Fateful Aria 214 • Censorship 216 • Farewell to the Theater 216 • The Temple
• Chapter Notes
• Bibliography
• Index